Tensions Between Twins

Rimuru POV

I ended up working through the night without sleeping; not that I even need that stuff in the first place. I have too much on my plate right now to waste time doing something that unnecessary. Despite being on 'vacation', the results of Walpurgis have dumped work on my lap that I can't put off.

By the time the sun peeked through the window of my bedroom, I was ready to take a break from all this. Thankfully, last week was the end of me having to come in early for the Student Council business. Ameri released me from my 'probationary period' so now I'm free to do my own thing, although I still need to keep her updated on stuff to a certain degree.

So around the time the others eat, I head downstairs and find Iruma sitting with Sullivan at the dining table, eating a breakfast that looks more elaborate than usual. I bet Sullivan set this up to help Iruma cheer up, but I could go for some nicer-than-usual food myself after going through about 8 hours of nothing but paperwork and stewing on what to do about Iruma.

"Good morning." I greet them.

"Good morning, Rimuru." Sullivan returns the greeting.

Iruma glances at me briefly before turning away and not saying anything, clearly still upset about what transpired at Walpurgis. He also looks tired so I doubt he got much sleep last night.

I give Iruma a concerned look before sitting down at the table too directly across from him.

"I-I'm going to g-go outside early…" Iruma says as he stands up and leaves the room, still not looking in my direction as he does.

It seems like he's trying to avoid me. It hurts a little, but if he wants me to give him some space, I will.

Now alone with Sullivan, I begin to eat, but there's an awkward silence filling the room making it hard to focus on my meal.

"Did you get some rest last night? From what I learned yesterday, I now know that that meeting was quite the ordeal for both of you." Sullivan says in a doting and concerned tone.

"I didn't sleep; I had too much work to do."

"But, Rimuru…"

"You know I don't need sleep, so it's not a problem for me to pull an all-nighter like that."

"That's true."

Sheesh, he seems even more concerned about me now…what's his deal? Is he really that worried about me? It doesn't make much sense for him to act like this when he knows who and what I am. At least he doesn't seem mad at me after learning what happened at Walpurgis, which is good. With how protective he is of Iruma, I was a little worried he would be very upset that I scared the kid so badly, but instead, he's worried about me too.

"I'd like to talk with you later about what happened yesterday. Iruma told me some of it but I want to hear your perspective too…if you don't mind." Sullivan says calmly before pausing to gauge my reaction. He seems more serious about this than he did just a moment ago.

"Sure; I can fill in some blanks for you, I guess," I respond. I don't mind telling him about what happened, especially since Iruma already gave him a recount of yesterday's events.

We don't really talk much more before we both finish eating.

Once I'm done, I join Iruma outside; he's still out there waiting for Azz and Clara to show up and walk with him to school. When I stepped out, he glanced fearfully at me briefly before turning his eyes toward the ground.

This is a real problem, isn't it? I haven't had to deal with someone getting scared of me like this before, at least when it comes to my friends. Even when my human friends back in the day learned of what I had to do to the Falmuth army, and the fact I did the deed personally, they didn't look at me differently after the fact. They understood my reasons, but I also have to remember that they were experienced adults who had lived in the harshness of the Cardinal World for many years. Iruma has gone through some hard times in the past, but he's never had to deal with anything like this, as far as I know. Plus, he's only 14; I can't blame him for not understanding on the spot.

I regret taking him to Walpurgis; it was a mistake. I really messed up, and now I'm paying the price for that.

I'm convinced that if I explain some things to Iruma so that he understands why I did what I did yesterday that he wouldn't be so upset. First, I have to get him to talk with me though, and that's not a possibility right now.

[[Master, may I make a suggestion?]]

Oh? You're finally speaking up again? You've been awful quiet as of late.

[[I was occupied with a task you gave me, Master.]]

Task? I don't remember asking you to do anything specific recently.

[[I have been investigating the presence residing within the Gluttonous Feeder Ring.]]

Oh, so that's what you've been up to? I almost forgot about that thing. So, what was that idea you had that'll help Iruma?

[[If we release the entity, he will assist Iruma much in the same way I do you. It will prove quite useful for us, given the current circumstances, Master.]]

How's that supposed to help Iruma get over his funk? Also, does this dude have a name or something?

[[The entity is named Alikred and he is quite agreeable and has been training under me. Allowing him to manifest and help the boy sort out his thoughts will help him cope with what he saw yesterday.]]

Are you sure about this guy? Iruma is in a pretty fragile state right now...

[[I assure you that this will be a beneficial move, Master. I have a full grasp of Alikred's character and personality since I have been monitoring and working with him for a while now. You have no need to worry yourself.]]

Alright, I'll trust ya like I usually do then. Thanks for this, Ciel.

[[You're welcome, Master.]]

Ciel is rarely wrong, so if she predicts this will help Iruma, I'll go with it.

**Flashback to soon after the battler party**

Third-Person POV

Within a white void stood two figures; one of a nondescript shape, formed of a purplish-black smoke with aspects that roughly resembled a face, horns, and arms; the other an almost angelic figure. Long silver-blue hair flowing down her back and dressed in nothing but a white cloth; both wrapping around her body and resting on her head, forming something resembling a hood. Her crimson eyes stared at the other figure; scrutinizing them in a cold, calculating manner, for her Master had instructed her to determine this creature's motives and nature.

"Do you have a name, creature who dwells within the ring of that boy?" Ciel asks coldly, still glaring at the smoke-creature.

"Wh-what? Where am I? Who are you? Wait, I can talk? I don't remember being able to do that!" the creature starts rambling and flailing around, panicked at the unfamiliar experiences he's having.

"Answer. Do you have a name?" Ciel asks in a demanding tone, causing the creature to freeze.

"Ali-…Alikred…" it mutters.

"Alikred…so you do possess a name. How interesting…" Ciel ponders.

"Um, since I gave you my name, lady, can you tell me yours? Maybe you could tell me where we are too since I'm very confused right now!"

"Ciel. I am here in my Master's place; he wishes to make contact with you since you appear to be linked with someone he has chosen to protect." She explains.

"I don't even know who you're talking about…"

"The person currently in possession of the ring you live inside. Do you have any ill intent toward him?" Ciel asks simply.

"Oh, that guy? No, I've been watching him for as long as I can remember, my memories are quite foggy though. I actually want to help him, since he seems to get into a lot of trouble." Alikred explains.

"That is good since that is exactly what my Master wants; to help that boy. If your motives align with ours, that means we can work together, Alikred." Ciel replies, a small grin forming on her lips.

**Back to the present**

Rimuru POV

With me giving her the okay, Ciel went ahead and 'unlocked' Alikred so he can finally show himself to Iruma. Ciel believes it would be best to keep his presence a secret from everyone but Iruma and me for the time being, so he won't pop out until Iruma is alone. I don't want to interfere with their introduction either so I'm not gonna tell Iruma about him ahead of time. It's not like the boy wants to talk to me right now anyway, so I'm not gonna even try.

It doesn't take much longer before Azz and Clara show up and excitedly walk up to the gate. When he notices their arrival, Iruma walks over to it quickly to join them.

Iruma POV

"Good morning, Master Iruma!"

"Hi, Iruma-chi!"

"Hi, you two." I greet them with a smile.

I'm glad to see my two friends again. This weekend felt like forever so seeing two welcoming smiling faces greeting me first thing in the morning is the perfect mood-booster that I need right now.

"Oh, is Rimuru walking with us today? It has been a while since your sister joined us on our walk to school." Azz ponders as he looks behind me. I quickly glance over my shoulder and see Rimuru standing in front of the large doors of the mansion, giving us an awkward wave and smile.

"Not really…"

Azz gives me a puzzled look.

"Why so?" Azz asks, looking worried.

"Yeah! I wanna play with Riri, so why can't she walk with us?!" Clara asks.

"Um…" I struggle to give my two friends an answer without lying to them.

"Did something happen between you two?" Azz asks.

"Yeah…something…" I mutter.

"What could've happened to upset you so much, Master? You two are normally inseparable." Azz continues, looking even more concerned.

"Sorry Azz, but I don't really feel like talking about it," I respond. I feel bad that I can't tell him, since he's my close friend, but this subject is just too much. I can't tell anyone here about what happened, and that includes these two.

He doesn't look satisfied by this but doesn't ask more about the subject.

The rest of the walk was fairly uneventful. Rimuru walked behind us but at a decent distance. She must've gotten that I don't really feel comfortable being near her right now and is respecting that. It makes me feel a little bad about my current feelings, but I can't help being scared of Rimuru right now.

Every time I glanced behind myself, I found her golden eyes staring back at me expectantly, as if waiting for me to initiate a conversation. I know she wants to talk about what happened, but I'm not ready yet. At least Rimuru isn't pushing the issue.

Clara, at one point, hung back and walked with Rimuru a bit. I assume she was asking Rimuru about what was going on between me and her, but they were far enough away that I couldn't catch their conversation.

The whole walk to Babyls felt like it took longer than normal because of the tension I was feeling from Rimuru, knowing that she was walking behind us the entire time. It's not that Rimuru was scaring me by doing this, but I kept thinking about what happened over the weekend because of her presence.

That's the main reason I've been avoiding Rimuru; just looking at her face is enough to remind me of what she did to Beluran.

I walk silently, lost in thought until I realized that we've arrived at Babyls already. Snapping out of my stupor, I make my way through the collection of students in front of the main entrance with Azz and Clara at my side. I wave back at a few people who greet me as I head toward the Misfit Class' classroom. Rimuru is still following at a distance, which I don't blame her for since we're going to the same place.

As I walk down the steep stairs of the cave the classroom is inside, we pass more garbage about halfway down. The other students are always dumping it here since they don't like to walk all the way to the place where they're supposed to put it, which is further in the cave past my classroom.

There also appears to be more graffiti along the walls than the last time I was here before the weekend. I don't understand why other people do stupid stuff like this!

I always feel bad for the janitors who end up having to clean these messes up so it's not uncommon for me, along with some of my classmates, to take care of some of them ourselves. We don't have the time to do that right now, though, so I simply walk past it, frowning slightly thinking about how careless some of the other students are.

"Wow, it really built up over the weekend, didn't it?" I hear Rimuru say from behind me.

I look over my shoulder and see her frowning at the larger-than-usual hill of trash.

She sighs and points a hand at the pile of garbage before it's abruptly engulfed in black flames. This startles me and I jump slightly, but quickly get over the shock.

"Wooooow!" Clara says as she watches the flames in amazement.

After a few seconds, the flames die out revealing that nothing is left of the large pile sitting there just a moment ago.

"How impressive, Rimuru! You've graced me with those beautiful flames of yours once again!" Azz exclaims, in awe of Rimuru's magic.

"Thanks, but don't try to turn it into something special. I just didn't like the look of that junk sitting there so I took care of it, that's all." Rimuru replies casually with a shrug.

I once again lock eyes with Rimuru and awkwardly look away.

"W-we should get walking…class will s-start soon…" I say as I start to walk down the stairs again.

"Yeah, I don't feel like having Kalego upset with me today for being late. Not really in the mood to deal with that." Rimuru says.

I rush a little to put some distance between Rimuru and me again since we got close again when I stopped to watch what she was doing. I hear her sigh from behind me as I do this but I try my best to ignore it.

Rimuru POV

The amount Iruma is trying to avoid me is starting to bum me out. I'm really hoping that he'll be up to talking with me tonight so we can get this whole mess resolved.

At least Sullivan wants to talk about it; maybe if he understands my viewpoint he'd help me reason with Iruma some? I know he at least isn't outright opposed to my decision since he knows some of the details from Iruma and doesn't seem very mad at me for it.

Once we get to the classroom I sit where I normally do near the back of the room. Iruma also takes his seat and chats with Azz and Clara some, not really paying me any mind. Soon, my table-mate Keroli shows up and sits next to me.

"Good morning Keroli." I greet her.

"Hi, Rimuru." She replies timidly as she sorts out her school materials on the table.

So, I end up just sitting there with my elbow rested on the table, leaning my face on one hand. It's not like I have anything better to do. I do have some leftover paperwork from Tempest, but I don't really feel like working on that stuff right now. It can wait until tonight.

Keroli seems to pick up on my less-than-ideal mood and gives me a puzzled look. I glance back at her, expecting her to ask me what's wrong, but instead, she shies away, not bold enough to ask me anything I suppose.

"Were you gonna ask me something?" I ask.

"Um…y-you just seem a little down t-today, that's all…" Keroli replies shyly.

"I'm fine, just a little worn out," I reply with a convincing fake smile. I don't feel like talking about it much with her or anyone else here. Even if I did explain, I can't give her enough details for her to truly understand, so why bother?

I guess I'm letting my true emotions show too much so I try to imitate my normal demeanor. I've gotten decent at acting over the years from dealing with politicians and keeping up appearances as a 'king', so if I actively put in the effort, I'm sure I can hide my feelings from a bunch of teenagers. In a more tense situation, I might have to employ Ciel's help in that, but right now I'm sure I can handle it on my own.

It seems like Keroli isn't the only one of my classmates that's picked up on the unease between Iruma and me either since the tension in the classroom is palpable. Most of the eyes in the room are fixated on me despite me not doing anything.

I've always had a habit of setting the mood around me; I don't do it on purpose, but it seems to happen more often or not.

Just as I'm making note of the negative mood I inadvertently caused, the door swings open and Kalego steps in.

"Silence!" he commands, using his 'favorite' word. It's almost like a catchphrase at this point for him with how much he says it.

"Today we will be covering primal demons; the state our species used to be in a very long time ago."

(AN: I want to make it very clear that I'm not talking about primordials, but demons that the ones that are 'going back to basics' are imitating. So this is Netherworld history that has nothing to do with Tensura's canon.)

He starts going on about how demons here used to be, bringing up how things were a lot more violent and brutal. I only half-listen to his lesson since I'm preoccupied with other things.

Iruma POV

Kalego starts teaching about what he calls 'primal demons', the state demons were in before the Netherworld underwent some major changes. Apparently, this was the period that inspired the 'back-to-basics' movement; the thing Kiriwo was involved in.

"The Netherworld used to be a much less forgiving environment. The weak were crushed brutally by the strong and any who challenged those at the top faced either decimation or complete servitude. Anarchy reigned supreme as everyone struggled to reach the top of the food chain; a jumbled mess of battles and wars. The Netherworld itself burned with the fury of its residents."

This is making me think of Walpurgis…

The weak being crushed by the strong? Challengers being 'decimated'? It all hits too close to home for me right now. But, even though I'm getting upset from being reminded of that gruesome event, Professor Kalego continues, unaware of what his lesson is doing to me.

"That was until the rank system was developed. A way to establish order in the sea of chaos that was the Netherworld at that time. No longer do we need to fight each other to establish our dominance. Superiority can be determined peacefully and the distinct levels allow demons to easily determine how they should treat one another. This is why ranks are essential to the survival of society as a whole. Some fools may find it unfair in some aspects, but the alternative is much worse."

"Um…p-professor?" I ask hesitantly.

"Yes? What is it, Iruma?"

"Wh-what would happen if s-someone disrespected a s-strong demon back then?"

"They would be killed, of course. Probably tortured extensively to make an example out of them as well." Professor Kalego says in a casual tone as if this is normal and completely fine.

Killed and tortured…

"O-oh…" I sputter out a small response to show that I heard him.

That sounds a lot like what Rimuru did…

Once again my mind is assaulted by images of yesterday's brutal scene.

"Of course, such actions still carry consequences to this day, so do not defy someone of a high rank such as myself. Not deadly consequences, but consequences nonetheless." Kalego continues, snapping me out of the train of thought I was going down.

I quickly look over at my fake 'sister' and find her seemingly not paying much attention, staring off into space. Rimuru doesn't look too happy either, a small frown formed on her lips.

"The highest rank of them all is Yodh, as all of you most likely know. This is the rank that must be achieved to become Demon King."

Professor Kalego continues to go into ranks and the Demon King, reiterating some information that I already know. I try my best to pay attention but my mind keeps wandering to places I don't want it to.

The rest of Professor Kalego's class goes like normal, but I did have a few people ask what was wrong. It seems that I'm showing that something's bothering me on my face. I've never been good at hiding my emotions.

I noticed that the professor did ask Rimuru to stay after class, but I didn't stick around to find out why.

The day drags on and lunch arrives. I have a reading session with Ameri today, so I quickly eat before running to go meet with her. I'm looking forward to spending some time with her; she always seems to cheer me up for some reason. Azz and Clara do too, but something about how Ameri makes me feel is…different. I'm not sure how to put it, but she just makes me smile when I'm with her.

"Ah, Iruma! There you are!" Ameri exclaims when she sees me rushing down the hallway toward her.

"Yeah, sorry! The lunch line was worse than usual so it took me longer."

"It's fine; I was just worried that you had forgotten about today, that's all," Ameri replies.

"Of course, I didn't forget, Ameri! I always look forward to spending time with you!"

"Y-you do? Well, I'm glad to hear that since I feel the same about you…we should get started now." Ameri says while turning her head to the side. Her cheeks are blushing slightly for some reason.

Did I say something that embarrassed her? I didn't mean to…

I start to read to her just like I usually do, but I keep getting distracted by my own thoughts. My mind keeps wandering to last weekend's events and what I witnessed at Walpurgis.

"Are you alright, Iruma? You seem to be preoccupied with something." Ameri inquires, sounding slightly concerned.

"Oh, it's nothing…something happened over the weekend and I keep thinking about it…"

"You can tell me about it if you want," Ameri asks nicely, her red eyes full of concern.

"I…uh…I'm not sure I can talk about it…"

"Iruma." She says a little more sternly as she steps closer to me.

"Wh-what?" I ask.

"I can tell this is bothering you greatly; I promise I won't tell anyone if you share," Ameri promises and lays one hand on my shoulder comfortingly.

"I know that…i-it's just…"

"Does it have to do with Rimuru?" Ameri asks in a very serious tone.

How did she know?!

"Uh…I-I…" I stumble to make an excuse.

"So it does have something to do with her…I knew it…she didn't do anything bad to you, did she?" Ameri asks, actually starting to seem angry.

"N-no! W-we…we just had a f-fight…a d-disagreement on s-something!" I insist to stop her from possibly confronting Rimuru over this.

Ameri doesn't seem to fully buy my explanation.

"I see…well I hope you two can reconcile; I can tell whatever it was you fought about is weighing on you," Ameri responds calmly and sits down again.

"Y-yeah…thank y-you Ameri…" I say, relieved that she seems to have calmed down.

"You're welcome. We might as well continue with the reading before we're out of time. As long as you feel like it, of course." Ameri says before taking a bite of one of the cookies she brought to eat while listening to me read to her.

"I'd like to keep reading…"

"Then please continue."

"I will."

Kalego POV

Today's class went even less smoothly than usual, and smooth isn't a word that I would use to describe the normal state of classes with these misfits. It seems like something has upset the 'Sullivan Twins' and it's causing the entire class to be out-of-sorts. This is mainly the fault of the female twin, Rimuru. Her negative demeanor rubbed off on the surrounding children and caused them all not to pay attention to my lecture. Her brother on the other hand was much more nervous than usual. This caused concern among his classmates, which further distracted them.

"Stay." I command sternly, stopping Rimuru in her tracks as she began to stand up from her chair.

"Why? I haven't done anything wrong and I have a class to go to that I'd rather not be late for." She retorts, already using a slightly disrespectful tone. I knew she'd be less cooperative with the mood she's been showing all morning, so I try not to react.

"Just stay behind for a few minutes so I can talk with you about something. If you are late for your next class, I will make sure it's excused; now stay." I continue calmly.

Rimuru sighs and sets her things back on the table.

"Ugh…fine, fine, I'll stick around for a few minutes."

We both wait for the other students to exit the classroom before continuing; the entire time Rimuru just stood there facing me with her arms crossed, glaring at me coldly.

I experience some uneasiness when looking into those gold eyes, but try my best to ignore that feeling.

"You better not try to interrogate me again; I'm not in as good of a mood as last time," Rimuru comments once the room has cleared.

"Yes, I am well aware of that. That's why we are speaking right now." I reply.

"Why would you care about my mood anyway?" she questions snarkily.

"When it affects my entire class, I do," I explain.

This is part of my reason, but I also do have some care for my students. Showing them an ounce of softness is not a good move, though. These misfits need a firm hand to guide them, so I can't show any weakness when it comes to their education.

This student, in particular, is a challenge, and she irritates me to no end with her disrespect and arrogance, but just like all those other imbeciles I teach, I still wish the best for her. If that means making myself an obstacle for her to overcome, so be it, but right now I want to know what's troubling both her and her brother.

"I wasn't being disruptive and if anything the misfit class was quieter than usual," Rimuru says, brushing off my concerns.

"Both you and your brother seemed distracted today, and many of your classmates seemed to be on edge because of that bad attitude you had all class, causing them to become distracted as well." I continue explaining, but Rimuru still doesn't seem bothered by what I'm saying.

"It's not my fault they pay so much attention to me, I wasn't trying to distract them." She continues dismissively.

"Just tell me what is wrong so I don't have to deal with another disrupted class tomorrow," I say, getting more assertive in my approach.

"No thanks." She retorts uncaringly.

"You know you can lean on your elders when you have a problem. I may be able to help." I continue to push her.

"Nah, this isn't something you could resolve," Rimuru replies.

How could she possibly know that?!

Now I am truly beginning to get upset since she's once again acting like she is more capable than me, a rank 8 demon, and her teacher.

"Don't you understand I am trying to help you!?" I ask irritatedly, raising my voice.

"Don't you understand that I don't care? Just let me go already." Rimuru sassily snaps back.

This causes me to tip over the edge.

"No! Sit down and explain to me what is going on before I get Chairdemon Sullivan involved!" I shout, now overwhelmed with frustration.

This seems to amuse Rimuru, who's now smiling mischievously at my anger instead of glaring coldly at me.

"Hahaha! Go ahead Kalego, I don't care if you tell Grandpa. I'm sure he'll be ~thrilled~ to know you've pissed me off again after he's warned you not to multiple times!" Rimuru counters with a big smirk on her face.

"You little…you're coming with me to his office, and I think this time your Grandfather won't let you get off so easy!"

"I'm not going anywhere except for my next class."

"If you refuse to walk, I will drag you there Rimuru! Now get moving!"

"Go ahead and drag me then."

Since this fool is refusing to come with me, I grab her by the collar of her uniform and pull her out of the door.

Up the stairs and out of the cave leading to the Misfit Class' room, I pull Rimuru across the campus. She's surprisingly light, even for her small size to the point of it being confusing.

I know I am strong, but still, I didn't expect dragging her would be so easy. Rimuru isn't fighting me either, simply staying motionless with her arms still crossed and a pout on her face.

Rimuru POV

Since Kalego was being annoying again, I decided to use him to blow off a little steam. A little bit of roleplay on my part to distract me from my worries. It's at Kalego's expense, but I don't really care about that. He gets mad at me whether I try to upset him or not, so I might as well have a little fun with it. This, of course, has led to my current situation.

I acted like a total brat, and just like I expected, he took the bait and is all worked up and frustrated.

Now I'm literally being dragged to Sullivan's office, which is fine. This will give me the opportunity to talk with him about Walpurgis after he deals with the situation I started with Kalego.

He doesn't seem to be having a hard time dragging me since I'm not putting up any resistance. My body is lighter than a human's, since my mass is the same as when I'm in slime form, so I'm not surprised Kalego isn't having any trouble at all pulling me along.

It only took a few minutes for us to reach Sullivan's office. People along the way seemed to think me being dragged was quite the show and I bet the gossip is already spreading. Most of the first-years know Kalego and me don't get along, so I'm sure many aren't surprised, but the fact that I'm wearing a Student Council uniform made the whole thing more of a spectacle to the average student here.

I wouldn't be surprised if Ameri 'has a word' with me later about this, but I'll deal with that if and when it comes.

Once we arrive, Kalego ranted and raved about how 'disrespectful' I was and how he simply wanted to know what was bothering me and Iruma. How it is his 'duty as our teacher' and that I was being 'unreasonably resistant' or whatever.

Honestly, I think it's none of his business, even if he is our teacher.

I kept up my 'rebellious teen' act the entire time to stay consistent.

"Naberius, you are dismissed. I will take care of things from here." Sullivan says in a serious tone.

Kalego gives a small nod before leaving.

I immediately drop the pout and fake childishness I was showing as soon as the door closes.

Sullivan stares at me for a moment and sighs before speaking up.

"I just have one question…why? I know Professor Kalego gets on your nerves, Rimuru, but you didn't have to intentionally rile him like that."

"Hey, I didn't have to, but he was just asking for it by probing me for information again when he knew I wasn't in a great mood."

"You know he was simply trying to help."

"Yeah, and I told him I didn't need it but he kept pushing."

Sullivan pauses, thinking about what to say for a moment before continuing.

"Is there another reason you came here?" he asks.

"I thought this was a good opportunity to have that talk we mentioned over breakfast," I reply with a small shrug.

"Unfortunately this isn't a good time; I am behind on some paperwork." He responds.

How relatable.

"Heh, I know the feeling…alright, we can talk tonight then. Sorry if I caused you some trouble, Sullivan. I won't irritate any more teachers today, I promise." I say with a smile.

"I would appreciate that." He says calmly before abruptly hugging me. "Now be a good girl and run off to your next class right away, my precious granddaughter!"

"Ack! Don't surprise me like that, Sullivan!" I exclaim as I wriggle my way out of his grasp.

"What? No 'Grandpa'?" Sullivan responds with what I think is a pout. It's hard to tell behind his mustache.

"Haha, fine…~Grandpa~. I'll be good." I reply with a chuckle.

This crazy old man, I swear…he always catches me off-guard when he does that!

With a small friendly wave, I leave the office, making sure to act much less cheerful afterward. It wouldn't make any sense for me to be happy after getting scolded by my 'Grandpa', and with other students being in the hallway, I need to do a little more acting.

With that distraction having eaten up a lot of time, it's already lunch period for me. By the time I got to the cafeteria, Iruma had already left Azz and Clara to go read to Ameri. This has become the norm, so Azz and Clara no longer get worked up about it like they used to.

As I begin eating, I'm stopped.

"Rimuru; can I talk with you for a moment? Alone." Azz asks in a serious manner, glancing at Clara as he says the word 'alone'.

Another 'talk' with someone? Sheesh.

"Azz-Azz, don't leave me out!" Clara complains with a pout.

Ignoring Clara, I respond.

"Sure," I say, take one more bite of my food and stand up, following Azz out into the hallway.

There's nobody else around except for Azz and myself. I wonder what he wants, but I think I might know already.

"What do you need, Azz?" I ask.

"I have…concerns. Master Iruma seems upset about something but won't give me any details. It seems to have something to do with you, so I was hoping that you could inform me of what's troubling him."

Something similar to this happened this morning with Clara, but I was able to easily brush off her begging for info. Azz on the other hand…he's a little more difficult to deal with. He really is a 'Diablo Jr.' personality-wise, wanting nothing but to serve Iruma. He's like that with me too somewhat, but Iruma is clearly his main fixation.

"We had a little…difference of opinions on something over the weekend and now he won't talk to me. You don't need to get involved any further than acting like you normally do. Just be his friend and comfort him until he gets over this whole mess, okay?"

"Are you certain that will be enough? He has never acted this way before…"

"I've got everything covered, Azz, so stop worrying so much. If you act sad, it'll just upset Iruma further I think, and I know that's not what you want."

"Not at all! I would deserve to be punished severely if I worsened Master Iruma's mental state!"

Man, he reminds me of Diablo…at least I know how to deal with his 'type' because of that similarity.

"Well, I think that solves things for you," I say calmly before starting to walk back toward the cafeteria's entrance.

"Wait! Can't you give me any more clarification?" Azz asks, sounding a little desperate.

"Sorry, but no. Now c'mon, we don't want our lunches to get cold." I calmly reply and continue walking.

Iruma POV

After finishing reading with Ameri, I still have a few minutes to spare before my next class. I start walking back toward the lunchroom but am quickly stopped. Purple-ish smoke begins pouring out of my ring before forming into something I've seen before.

It's that thing! The thing that sucked away everyone's magical power after the flying exam!

Rimuru said it would never come out again because she's been feeding it, so what is it doing?! Did she stop since I'm not talking with her right now? Is Rimuru punishing me for not agreeing with her?!

"Why are you coming out of my ring?! You're not supposed to do that!" I say, completely panicking since this thing is dangerous! I've seen it make people faint from just touching them!

"Well, things have changed kiddo, so just calm down." The smoke creature says nonchalantly.

"What? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, since you don't want your fake sister around right now, I decided to come out and help you instead! I'm your fairy godmother of sorts. Or would it be godfather? Probably demon instead of fairy too…well that doesn't matter! I am here to assist you with your magic and act as a companion!"

I'm at a loss for words, not sure how to react in this crazy situation.

"This does feel weird though, being out in the world like this. It's huge out here, way bigger than I expected! Talking too…I've never done that before, have I? At least not with you, kiddo." The thing keeps rambling while I continue to freak out.

That's when I hear some voices from behind me and see some other students approaching me.

"Hide! We can't let them see you!" I say quickly.

"Oh yes! I'm not supposed to be seen by anyone else…although a dramatic entrance would be fun, I shouldn't let others see me, should I?" the creature ponders with little to no urgency.

"No! So go back into my ring, or wherever you were before!" I insist even more fervently and panicking even more since if the students get any closer they'll definitely see this crazy smoke monster.

"Sure thing! But we need to talk, so find a secluded spot where nobody will barge in on us, okay?"

"Sure! Fine! I'll go into an unused classroom or something, just hide!" I agree, just wanting this thing to disappear already before someone sees it.